VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Sets New 52-Week High - What's Next?

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $290.38 and last traded at $289.69, with a volume of 207286 shares. The stock had previously closed at $287.68.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on VRSN. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on VeriSign from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen raised VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 12th.

VeriSign Trading Up 0.6%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $277.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $243.90. The firm has a market cap of $27.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.38 and a beta of 0.77.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.10. The firm had revenue of $402.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $400.44 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 41.37% and a net margin of 50.23%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.92 EPS.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a -- dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.65%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Yehuda Ari Buchalter sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.79, for a total transaction of $170,274.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,059,955.65. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP John Calys sold 400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.97, for a total value of $112,788.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,335 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,579,769.95. The trade was a 1.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,002 shares of company stock valued at $7,013,599. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VeriSign

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 13,000.0% in the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 131 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 1st quarter worth $34,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 106.5% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 159 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 1st quarter worth $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Company Profile

VeriSign, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides domain name registry services and internet infrastructure that enables internet navigation for various recognized domain names worldwide. The company enables the security, stability, and resiliency of internet infrastructure and services, including providing root zone maintainer services, operating two of thirteen internet root servers; and offering registration services and authoritative resolution for the .com and .net domains, which supports global e-commerce.

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